Digital Foundry’s Best Games of 2025

Digital Foundry published its ranking of the best games of 2025 based on graphics, and The Game Awards’ frontrunner, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, didn’t make it into the top three.

3rd Place – Death Stranding 2: On the Beach

Experts noted the exceptional detail of scenes and locations and cinematic lighting even without ray tracing. According to DF, the game almost pushes the PlayStation 5 to its limits.

2nd Place – Assassin’s Creed Shadows

The most beautiful installment in the series since Unity: ray-traced global illumination, realistic destruction, and vibrant environmental interactions. Looks best on PC, PS5 (especially Pro), and Xbox Series X.

1st Place – DOOM: The Dark Ages

This ranking leader is due to its combination of stunning visuals and stable performance. Global illumination with Real-Time Illumination (RTI) works quickly even in large environments, and physics and destruction don’t impact FPS.

The extended list, without specific placements, also includes Silent Hill 4, Routine, Metroid Prime 4, Mafia: The Old Country, Ghost of Yotei, Earthion, and Dying Light: The Beast. DOOM also singled out Mario Kart World, Kirby Air Riders, and Fast Fusion for their stable 60 FPS on Switch 2.